Utah Beckons Production With Old West Landscapes and a 20%-25% Tax Credit

The Beehive State has a lot to offer filmmakers. Every winter many of them converge on the Sundance Film Festival, not far from the capital of Salt Lake City. And year round they can shoot throughout the state, among picturesque scenery that typifies the old West, while also benefiting from a 20-25% tax credit for qualifying productions, and no per-project cap.

The tax credit is against eligible Utah spend. A 20% cash rebate is available to productions that spend less than $1 million. The minimum spend to qualify for the credit is $500,000.

On March 9, the Utah Film Commission announced that Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) Board had approved five new projects for state film incentives including a new music video by the band Imagine Dragons and a new take on the classic tale of “Little Women.”

Projects shot in Utah over the past decade comprise a good mix of films and TV. They include HBO’s “Westworld,” which debuted in 2016; the 2016 release “Independence Day: Resurgence”; “Area 52” (2015); the TV series “Blood & Oil”; “The Giver” (2014); “John Carter” (2012); and “127 Hours” (2010).

In all, over 900 films have been produced in Utah over the years, including such classics as “Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid,” “Forrest Gump” and “High School Musical.”